Everett Sloane plays Franklyn Gibbs, who, along with his wife Flora, goes to a casino in Las Vegas after winning a vacation prize. Once there, Franklyn admonishes his wife for gambling, which he considers foolish, but after a fateful pull of a slot machine, finds himself hopelessly addicted to playing and winning no matter how long it takes, or how much it costs, either in money or even in lives... Both amusing yet menacing cautionary tale is pretty obvious when all is said and done, yet remains surprisingly entertaining, with a good performance by Sloane as a man forced to confront his own hypocrisy and self-destruction.
42 Reviews
One Armed Bandit
Hitchcoc30 September 2008
This is an advertisement for Gamblers Anonymous. We meet this grisly old guy who makes life miserable for everyone. He won't let his wife have any fun on a vacation to Las Vegas that she has won. He wins some money when a man gives him a dollar and tells him to play the slots. He wins. Soon he is obsessed with trying to beat the machine. Except the machine is corporeal monster. It entices him. It talks to him. It follows him around. He can't stop. He goes berserk in the casino. As we all know, it will come to no good end. I would venture to say that the hallucinations that this man is experiencing are not unlike the drives of the compulsive gambler. This nasty old guy gets his and the fact that he is in the Twilight Zone is probably because of his horrible treatment of other people. It's an interesting episode, but pretty predictable.
A Look at Gambling Addiction
DKosty1232 November 2018
Warning: Spoilers
This Serling written script centers around a couple who have won a free trip to Las Vegas. They are told all their expenses are paid. One thing left open is whether or not that includes gambling money but considering the casino business I doubt that is covered.
The guy then proceeds to get hooked on one slot machine. His wife stands helplessly by as he becomes more and more obsessed. The machine takes on a life of its own and keeps after him. Finally he is over come by the machine and it breaks down on his last dollar.
Then he loses it totally. The message here about gambling addiction is quite ordinary, and this Zone makes a point about it. There is not as much unusual stuff in this one as in other episodes, but there is enough to make it a good episode.
The guy then proceeds to get hooked on one slot machine. His wife stands helplessly by as he becomes more and more obsessed. The machine takes on a life of its own and keeps after him. Finally he is over come by the machine and it breaks down on his last dollar.
Then he loses it totally. The message here about gambling addiction is quite ordinary, and this Zone makes a point about it. There is not as much unusual stuff in this one as in other episodes, but there is enough to make it a good episode.
Whatever happens in Vegas
DIES in Vegas!
Coventry31 August 2016
In between all the versatile "The Twilight Zone" episodes dealing with grotesque supernatural themes or extraterrestrial influences, "The Fever" initially doesn't come across as very overwhelming or memorable. After all, it's only the story of an elderly couple that visits Las Vegas because they won a price and the husband, at first a huge opponent of gambling, slowly becomes obsessed with one particular Slots machine that he believes is calling out to him. Nothing too special, you'd think, but for some inexplicable reason the episode nevertheless keeps spooking around in my head. I watched it a couple of weeks ago (I actually forgot to review it) but I'm surprised to notice now that I still remember most small details. Most admirable elements about it are the steady but firm mounting of the tension, the unsettling depiction of Franklin's descent into insanity and the grim climax. I keep thinking that the Slot machines, also known as "one-armed bandits" or even "metal monsters", perhaps figure as a metaphor for various other types of dangerous challenges in life, or maybe what overcomes Franklin is punishment for being such a dominant and hateful person to his wife and surrounding
After all, we're in "The Twilight Zone". "The Fever" probably won't make it into too many favorite listings, and neither in mine, but it's worth checking out of course. Everett Sloane and Vivi Janiss give away good, realistic performances and Robert Florey's direction is surefooted and reliable.
The Twilight Zone--The Fever
Scarecrow-8813 April 2013
Warning: Spoilers
Despite the pretty heavy-handed message that gambling can be evil and have such a corrupting influence that someone who holds himself up to highly moral standards could be so overpowered by "the fever" that he hears a slot machine calling his name and actually approaching him, I have to admit that The Fever does a pretty captivating job (thanks to Robert Florey's direction) of provoking a response. Everett Sloan is tasked with making a pretty incorrigible blowhard, with a big mouth and so pious to the point that he's grating, pitiable but over time just what he goes through might be enough to earn some sympathy. I have to say I found him really hard to find empathy for considering his mistreatment of wife Flora (played by Vivi Janiss as someone walking on egg shells when talking with her husband, aware of his grumpy nature because she's probably tolerated him for decades in an unhappy marriage), even telling her to shut up when she attempts to pry him away from that damned slot machine ($10,000 jackpot it offers). The nifty part of this tale is how director Florey shows Sloan's Franklin wearing down over time and how the machine seems to be some sort of manifestation of evil. It didn't hurt that the voice beckoning, "Franklin" was quite eerie. Though, saying all that, seeing a slot machine "walking" towards a totally beside-himself Franklin is a bit cheesy, although it does explain to us that he's seeing this "entity" of his own imagination that is so real to him it leads to him going through a hotel window!
A monster with a will all its own.
Hey_Sweden8 June 2023
Warning: Spoilers
The Gibbs are an average middle-aged couple on vacation in Las Vegas. She'd won an all expenses paid trip, complete with accommodations, and is hoping to have a good time. But her husband is a miserly, VERY moral type who is *begrudgingly* along for the ride. Wouldn't you know it: HE'S the one who ends up with a hopeless, scary case of gambling fever after a successful initial round at a particular slot machine.
'The Fever' is certainly believable enough, especially, I'm sure, for anybody who's ever experienced gambling fever themselves. They cling, like Mr. Gibbs, to the pathetic, desperate hope that at *some* point all of their efforts will pay off. And even when he's dragged away and sent back to his hotel room, the machine continues to mock and haunt him. He even imagines it appearing at his door and moving inside, intent on terrorizing him.
All in all, this original by Mr. Serling (inspired by an actual trip he and his wife had taken to Vegas, where he experienced a similar lack of success) plays out convincingly. It IS well-acted, especially by Everett Sloane ("Citizen Kane") as the unhinged Franklin Gibbs. But it also plays out with a lack of suspense and surprise. It turns out exactly the way we'd all imagine.
Overall, this rates as a decent but not great TZ episode.
Seven out of 10.
'The Fever' is certainly believable enough, especially, I'm sure, for anybody who's ever experienced gambling fever themselves. They cling, like Mr. Gibbs, to the pathetic, desperate hope that at *some* point all of their efforts will pay off. And even when he's dragged away and sent back to his hotel room, the machine continues to mock and haunt him. He even imagines it appearing at his door and moving inside, intent on terrorizing him.
All in all, this original by Mr. Serling (inspired by an actual trip he and his wife had taken to Vegas, where he experienced a similar lack of success) plays out convincingly. It IS well-acted, especially by Everett Sloane ("Citizen Kane") as the unhinged Franklin Gibbs. But it also plays out with a lack of suspense and surprise. It turns out exactly the way we'd all imagine.
Overall, this rates as a decent but not great TZ episode.
Seven out of 10.
Franklin! What Is It!
sol-kay5 January 2012
Warning: Spoilers
***SPOILERS*** After winning an all expense trip to Las Vegas Flora Gibbs,Vivi Janiss,never realized what that would do to her straight laced husband Franklin, Everett Sloane, who had never made a bet or gambled in his entire life. Franklin looked at gambling as an evil addiction and he was determined not to have anything to do with it even he's was to stay two nights and three days at a Las Vegas casino hotel.
While hanging around the casino Franklin was confronted by this drunk, Art Lewis, who forced the startled Franklin to bet his-the drunk's- last silver dollar in the nearest slot machine. To Franklin's surprise he ended up winning some 20 dollars that the slot spit out! Determined not to give his winning back Franklin and Flora went back to their hotel room to sleep it off. It's then that Franklin started to get ideas in what to do with his,in Franklin's mind, ill gotten gains. Give it back, by playing, to the slot machine that give it to him and have no guilt feelings about winning it! As things soon were to turn out it was a to be a fatal mistake on Franklin's part.
As if hypnotized by the slot machine Franklin seemed glued to it not only giving back his earlier winnings but every last dime he had on him. Going back to get more cash with personal checks to feed the machine Franklin ends up losing his pants as the slot machine devourers every dollar he has. It's when Franklon was down to his last silver dollar and plunked it down the slot machine that it suddenly broke down leaving him flat broke! In Franklin feeling that he was about to finally hit the big one, the $10,000.00 grand prize, that the slot was going to dish out it dropped dead on him in keeping Franklin from winning it!
***SPOILERS*** Back in his hotel-room and on the brink of a nervous breakdown Franklin starts seeing things in the dead slot machine coming back to life and and turning his life into a living hell! With his hysterical wife Flora telling him that what he claims to be seeing, the walking and talking slot machine, is only an illusion a terrified Franklin in an effort to escape from the one armed bandit backs up against the window and breaks through it falling to his death some three floors below. The ironic thing in all that is the machine in a show of sympathy dropped the last silver dollar that Franklin lost playing it thus keeping him from going broke. As if that dollar would mean anything to him since being dead he no longer has any more use for it anyway!
While hanging around the casino Franklin was confronted by this drunk, Art Lewis, who forced the startled Franklin to bet his-the drunk's- last silver dollar in the nearest slot machine. To Franklin's surprise he ended up winning some 20 dollars that the slot spit out! Determined not to give his winning back Franklin and Flora went back to their hotel room to sleep it off. It's then that Franklin started to get ideas in what to do with his,in Franklin's mind, ill gotten gains. Give it back, by playing, to the slot machine that give it to him and have no guilt feelings about winning it! As things soon were to turn out it was a to be a fatal mistake on Franklin's part.
As if hypnotized by the slot machine Franklin seemed glued to it not only giving back his earlier winnings but every last dime he had on him. Going back to get more cash with personal checks to feed the machine Franklin ends up losing his pants as the slot machine devourers every dollar he has. It's when Franklon was down to his last silver dollar and plunked it down the slot machine that it suddenly broke down leaving him flat broke! In Franklin feeling that he was about to finally hit the big one, the $10,000.00 grand prize, that the slot was going to dish out it dropped dead on him in keeping Franklin from winning it!
***SPOILERS*** Back in his hotel-room and on the brink of a nervous breakdown Franklin starts seeing things in the dead slot machine coming back to life and and turning his life into a living hell! With his hysterical wife Flora telling him that what he claims to be seeing, the walking and talking slot machine, is only an illusion a terrified Franklin in an effort to escape from the one armed bandit backs up against the window and breaks through it falling to his death some three floors below. The ironic thing in all that is the machine in a show of sympathy dropped the last silver dollar that Franklin lost playing it thus keeping him from going broke. As if that dollar would mean anything to him since being dead he no longer has any more use for it anyway!
Powerful and emotionally charged!
musicking5229 September 2006
This episode is great. It involves the haunting plot of a preachy and stingy guy going to Las Vegas and getting hooked on gambling. The first scenes show Franklin Gibbs as expounding the inherent evils of the "games of chance." He makes it known to his wife, Flora, how sinful and wicked gambling is...till, he starts to gamble. Why did I like I it? The message is powerful and thought provoking...Everett Sloane and Vivi Janiss positively shine in the emotionally charged scenes. Serling's writing is to the point and the music score credibly adds to the taut and tense scenes. Please see this one...Franklin...Oh Franklin!...You won't forget it.
"I'm not concerned with people, I'm... I'm concerned with this machine".
classicsoncall13 March 2010
Warning: Spoilers
More than one episode of The Twilight Zone ended with a character falling out of a window; this one was the first. 'The Fever' characterizes Franklin Gibbs' (Everett Sloane) obsession with a Las Vegas one armed bandit after being introduced as a puritanical and tight fisted zealot who'll deprive his wife (Vivi Janiss) of a good time while on vacation. Gibbs' inadvertent pull on a slot machine handle, prompted by a lush who had had enough for the evening, leads to desperation once he becomes determined to 'get back' an investment that he wasn't beholden to in the first place. It's a bit of a mental stretch that his character would have undergone such a drastic change of temperament in the space of an evening, but such is the power of transformation in the Twilight Zone. Gibbs' ultimate fate is as comic as it is tragic, imagining in his mind that an out of control slot machine is about to do him in. Even though I felt bad for Mrs. Gibbs, I had the manic thought that cosmic justice would have been served if that 'Out of Order' sign had been laid to rest along side his body.
Disappointing, disappointing, disappointing
Skeeter70019 March 2006
This is a mediocre episode of The Twilight Zone. The story is simple: A couple wins a trip to Las Vegas where the husband becomes a gambling addict. The biggest problem with "The Fever" is just how unlikeable and unsympathetic the characters are. Neither the acting nor the writing help the situation much; the husband is a know-it-all jerk while the wife is mousy and annoying. Without a character to identify with, the viewer cannot share the husbands experience with addiction or the wife's horror at watching her family's saving being gambled away. The gimmick in this episode is that the slot machine can say the husbands name, beckoning him to the machine. Overall, a forgettable episode that I awarded only a mark of 5.7.
Mediocre, at best
planktonrules29 January 2008
Warning: Spoilers
Okay, so the main premise is that an elderly grouch begins gambling and the slot machine talks to him--enticing him to spend more and more and more and more until he's bankrupt. This sounds like perhaps the basis for the beginning of an episode or perhaps a five to ten minute vignette. However, to be strung out to a full episode is appalling--and most of the show seemed padded and completely unnecessary. Plus, there really is no more to the story than what I put in my first sentence. For die-hard Twilight Zone zombies, it's brilliant and perfect. For anyone who will admit that for every great episode, there was probably one decent one and one dog, then this is perhaps one of the dogs. Not a great big dog--but still a dog. Dull, unimaginative and thoroughly mediocre at best.
Giving in to gambling fever
Woodyanders2 May 2017
Warning: Spoilers
Uptight old grump Franklin Gibbs (well played to the cranky hilt by Everett Sloane) and his sweet long-suffering wife Flora (a winningly perky portrayal by Vivi Janiss) are spending an all expenses paid three day vacation in Las Vegas. Franklin initially disapproves of gambling, but changes his mind about the issue after he succumbs to the allure of a rather sinister slot machine.
Director Robert Florey relates the enjoyable story at a zippy pace and vividly evokes the deliriously boisterous Vegas casino atmosphere. Rod Serling's smart script astutely captures how a seemingly harmless compulsion can easily transform into a dangerous addiction. Better still, Sloane absolutely nails the raw desperation and grim mental disintegration of his increasingly pathetic character. The stylish black and white cinematography by George T. Clemens provides an appropriately garish look. A potent little parable on the potentially destructive nature of compulsive gambling.
Director Robert Florey relates the enjoyable story at a zippy pace and vividly evokes the deliriously boisterous Vegas casino atmosphere. Rod Serling's smart script astutely captures how a seemingly harmless compulsion can easily transform into a dangerous addiction. Better still, Sloane absolutely nails the raw desperation and grim mental disintegration of his increasingly pathetic character. The stylish black and white cinematography by George T. Clemens provides an appropriately garish look. A potent little parable on the potentially destructive nature of compulsive gambling.
Demonizing the enemy.
rmax3048231 January 2012
Warning: Spoilers
This isn't a particularly well-done episode of "The Twilight Zone." Everett Sloan and his wife are visiting Las Vegas. Sloan heartily disapproves of gambling but soon finds himself feeding all his silver dollars into the machine, which shows it gratitude by haunting him to death in his hotel room.
What makes it interesting, probably inadvertently, is that the story illustrates the way we tend to deal with things -- ideologies or individuals -- whom we deem "evil." We demonize them. We attribute all sorts of features to them that come from our own imaginations. Sloan's nemesis acquires a squeaky humanoid voice and the ability to get around, to tempt him, to drive him nuts.
And in fact it's just a machine, after all, that puts the player on what psychologists would call a fractional reenforcement schedule. It pays off just enough to keep you feeding it, and it's the kind of schedule best designed to create a habit that's hard to break. Still, it's just wheels and cranks and probabilities.
The problem lies not with the slot machine but with Everett Sloan's mind, and, by extension, the minds of all of us when we decide something is evil and then deal with it.
What makes it interesting, probably inadvertently, is that the story illustrates the way we tend to deal with things -- ideologies or individuals -- whom we deem "evil." We demonize them. We attribute all sorts of features to them that come from our own imaginations. Sloan's nemesis acquires a squeaky humanoid voice and the ability to get around, to tempt him, to drive him nuts.
And in fact it's just a machine, after all, that puts the player on what psychologists would call a fractional reenforcement schedule. It pays off just enough to keep you feeding it, and it's the kind of schedule best designed to create a habit that's hard to break. Still, it's just wheels and cranks and probabilities.
The problem lies not with the slot machine but with Everett Sloan's mind, and, by extension, the minds of all of us when we decide something is evil and then deal with it.
Sloane doesn't quite save this Zone
groovingpict7 December 2009
The only reason I am giving this episode a four star rating, is Everett Sloane's performance. Clearly this man must have been a very talented actor, although I don't know any of his other work.
Everything else about this episode is either very bad, very dull, unintentionally comical, or all three at once. The story is dreadfully dull (although the base idea behind it is not necessarily bad, and might make an interesting short, if done correctly), the episode is all just put together badly, and the "dramatic" ending is just laughable, rather than scary/intense.
This is the worst episode of Twilight Zone I have seen, and it would've gotten 2 stars from me, had it not been for Mr. Sloane who does a stand up job of trying to save this episode. Unfortunately, this is beyond saving by even the most talented of actors.
Everything else about this episode is either very bad, very dull, unintentionally comical, or all three at once. The story is dreadfully dull (although the base idea behind it is not necessarily bad, and might make an interesting short, if done correctly), the episode is all just put together badly, and the "dramatic" ending is just laughable, rather than scary/intense.
This is the worst episode of Twilight Zone I have seen, and it would've gotten 2 stars from me, had it not been for Mr. Sloane who does a stand up job of trying to save this episode. Unfortunately, this is beyond saving by even the most talented of actors.
The Morality vs the Games
AvionPrince1629 July 2022
Warning: Spoilers
The episode is not really interesting in the plot i mean but in the warning of the games and the addiction of it. Here is an example with a old man who have some morality and dont want to lose his money at first but after he won some money, he completely lose his reasons and become really addicted to the games and become completely out of control. He lose enerything include his wife, his money, his reasons and His life. A warning about games. Pretty dramatic but can be a believable situation. Careful with games!
Fails to hit the jackpot.
BA_Harrison19 June 2016
Elderly married couple Franklin and Flora Gibbs (Everett Sloane and Vivi Janiss) win an all-expenses paid hotel break in Las Vegas. Franklin doesn't approve of gambling and insists that his wife stays away from the one-arm bandits, but after a drunk gives Franklin his last silver dollar, the old man becomes gripped by the 'fever': a gambling addiction that robs him of his sanity, making him believe that one particular slot machine is calling his name, enticing him to play.
At face value, this is a rather unexceptional tale of severe mental breakdown caused by an obsessive disorder, as well as a non-too-subtle warning against the evils of gambling. This being The Twilight Zone, however, The Fever can be seen as something else entirely: a story of a malevolent metal monster that sets out to rob a man of his dignity, his money, his mind, and—ultimately—his life. You decide.
A long way from my favourite episode of season one, a fruit machine menacing Franklin in his hotel room being a rather laughable sight rather than the stuff of nightmares.
At face value, this is a rather unexceptional tale of severe mental breakdown caused by an obsessive disorder, as well as a non-too-subtle warning against the evils of gambling. This being The Twilight Zone, however, The Fever can be seen as something else entirely: a story of a malevolent metal monster that sets out to rob a man of his dignity, his money, his mind, and—ultimately—his life. You decide.
A long way from my favourite episode of season one, a fruit machine menacing Franklin in his hotel room being a rather laughable sight rather than the stuff of nightmares.
Las Vegas Fever
StrictlyConfidential20 June 2021
Warning: Spoilers
"The Fever" (episode 17) was first aired on television January 29, 1960.
Anyway - As the story goes - Tight-fisted Franklin Gibbs is not pleased when his wife wins a trip for two to Las Vegas. But things change when he falls under the spell of a slot machine that calls his name.
Anyway - As the story goes - Tight-fisted Franklin Gibbs is not pleased when his wife wins a trip for two to Las Vegas. But things change when he falls under the spell of a slot machine that calls his name.
A tad weak
ericstevenson10 July 2018
Warning: Spoilers
This was probably the worst episode in the entire series that I saw so far. It's mostly because there's just no twist. The episode features a guy who goes to Las Vegas where he doesn't want to gamble. He manages to win some money once. At night, he keeps hearing his name being called out. He's compelled to go back to the slot machine and keep trying.
Obviously, he fails. He hears the voice again and sees the slot machine come to life and attack him! I admit that it was kind of hard to take this seriously. I mean, it's about a slot machine that comes to life and attacks people! It's just too silly to take seriously. It's kind of dumb, but is at least well acted which is what I'd expect from this show. **1/2
Obviously, he fails. He hears the voice again and sees the slot machine come to life and attack him! I admit that it was kind of hard to take this seriously. I mean, it's about a slot machine that comes to life and attacks people! It's just too silly to take seriously. It's kind of dumb, but is at least well acted which is what I'd expect from this show. **1/2
I love it
joesands24 June 2016
For people not living in Las Vegas, and deal with the decline of the human spirit by gambling, this episode may seem lame. But when Franklin begins his Rambling Rant after his wife says "it's just a machine" It made me uncontrollably start laughing. "It's not a machine.. It's an ENTITY!". Anyone who has lived in 'Vegas a long time, knows the justifications of die-hard gamblers... this was perfect, and very very well done.
While the concept of a tight fisted mid-westerner on vacation becoming a degenerate gambler might seem far fetched, those of us who live here and shake our heads, know that stranger things have happened.
There was a great deal of symbolism in the sketch as well, when Franklin dove out of the hotel window and the machine is there "looking at him" with it's blinking light, it shows the humiliation of the human spirit by an inanimate object.
The writing of the twilight zone shows was very well done, and it's amazing to see how relevant they are still today.
While the concept of a tight fisted mid-westerner on vacation becoming a degenerate gambler might seem far fetched, those of us who live here and shake our heads, know that stranger things have happened.
There was a great deal of symbolism in the sketch as well, when Franklin dove out of the hotel window and the machine is there "looking at him" with it's blinking light, it shows the humiliation of the human spirit by an inanimate object.
The writing of the twilight zone shows was very well done, and it's amazing to see how relevant they are still today.
Boring
Dmyjuly1 June 2014
This episode was boring and at times, annoying. This is coming from a huge Twilight Zone fan. I have been watching The Twilight Zone since I was a preteen, but since having Hulu plus, I have been watching every episode in order. This one stood out as being the worst so far. I won't summarize the episode because others have already done that, but please don't let this episode stop you from watching others. I would not skip watching it because the acting isn't bad, and the message is not terrible, but the way it is delivered and, as someone else stated, there just was not enough content to make this idea into a full episode.
Gambling addiction turned horror
christopherRclarke21 December 2022
Warning: Spoilers
Unlike some others on here, I found this to be a pretty incredible episode into the mind of gambling addiction. I've played a few pokies at a younger age and the feeling of a machine you lost at haunting you is real, like in this episode.
It starts off fairly simple in the gambling hall but when the machine haunts his mind it goes into a full horror film, pretty well played too for 1959 standards. For me it's one of the most intriguing episodes yet in this first season and to see a man's struggle with gambling addiction even in 1959 seems so relevant to modern age (I know people with bad gambling addictions).
It starts off fairly simple in the gambling hall but when the machine haunts his mind it goes into a full horror film, pretty well played too for 1959 standards. For me it's one of the most intriguing episodes yet in this first season and to see a man's struggle with gambling addiction even in 1959 seems so relevant to modern age (I know people with bad gambling addictions).
Viva Las Vegas
Calicodreamin27 May 2021
Gripping tale of an obsession's toll on a man's sanity
mlraymond3 January 2007
Warning: Spoilers
I saw this episode for the first time late at night in a college dormitory TV lounge. From the moment when crabby old Franklin Gibbs hears the demonic voice of a slot machine calling to him, everyone present shivered. As silly as the basic idea sounds, this is absolutely one of the most hair raising TZ episodes ever made.
The acting is superb, with Everett Sloane as the grumpy Franklin and Vivi Janiss as his sweet tempered, patient wife Flora. Franklin's gradual change of personality, from a puritanical, joyless man denouncing everybody around him for gambling, to becoming a total gambling addict himself, is amazing. Watch the way that he rationalizes going back to gamble more, after having unexpectedly won a large amount. He tells his wife that he wants to get rid of the " dirty money" he supposedly doesn't want to keep, by gambling it away again. You wonder who he's really trying to convince.
Whether the diabolical slot machine is actually alive and beckoning to him, or whether it's a delusion, is ambiguous. The way the episode is filmed, it could be interpreted either way. But however each viewer chooses to explain it, the metallic, menacing voice of the machine, calling out " Franklin!" is unforgettable.
The acting is superb, with Everett Sloane as the grumpy Franklin and Vivi Janiss as his sweet tempered, patient wife Flora. Franklin's gradual change of personality, from a puritanical, joyless man denouncing everybody around him for gambling, to becoming a total gambling addict himself, is amazing. Watch the way that he rationalizes going back to gamble more, after having unexpectedly won a large amount. He tells his wife that he wants to get rid of the " dirty money" he supposedly doesn't want to keep, by gambling it away again. You wonder who he's really trying to convince.
Whether the diabolical slot machine is actually alive and beckoning to him, or whether it's a delusion, is ambiguous. The way the episode is filmed, it could be interpreted either way. But however each viewer chooses to explain it, the metallic, menacing voice of the machine, calling out " Franklin!" is unforgettable.
Weird
murphysp-3272825 March 2019
I found Mr Sloane entertaining
darrenpearce1114 December 2013
Flora Gibbs (Vivi Janiss) has won a competition and is starting to enjoy her prize, a holiday in Las Vegas. Yet her smile doesn't last long as Franklin Gibbs (Everett Sloane, of 'Citizen Kane' fame) is her sanctimonious and boorish husband. Franklin has a scowl that could mortify, and a ghastly know-all character. In no time he's addicted to one of the machines and thinks it's calling his name. There's a certain 'Fra-nk-lin' kind of sound from the clinking of coins.
Sloane is brilliant as Franklin's rationality gives way to gambling addiction. Flora suffers on the sideline as Franklin gets more and more irrational, claiming the machine mocks and teases him.
There is a lot of truth in the way Franklin behaves as a compulsive gambler. The conclusion is satisfying for me as we get to see the action from Franklin's and also Flora's eyes.
Scary because the strange power in this case rings very true.
Sloane is brilliant as Franklin's rationality gives way to gambling addiction. Flora suffers on the sideline as Franklin gets more and more irrational, claiming the machine mocks and teases him.
There is a lot of truth in the way Franklin behaves as a compulsive gambler. The conclusion is satisfying for me as we get to see the action from Franklin's and also Flora's eyes.
Scary because the strange power in this case rings very true.
See also
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